Monday, June 29, 2009

Crocodiles are Spin's "band to watch". Read the article here. Or don't.

"If you live there, then you slowly die." That's how Brandon Welchez,frontman and beat programmer for drone-pop duo Crocodiles, describes his band'shometown of San Diego. "A lot of the nastiness in our music comes from reactingto the boring culture there, and the sunshine," adds guitarist Charles Rowell."The sunshine can be oppressive."

Obviously I disagree.

In other 'get over yourself' news, Wavves finally spoke about the meltdown in Barcelona on Pitchfork.

Even before Barcelona, there were shows just like that, where it was just a mess and it fucking sucked. But it was to like 25 people in Little Rock, Arkansas or something. I don't really know what to say, but the fact of the matter is that I'm not really that good. I wouldn't say that I'm really like a guitar guy or anything like that. I can get by on the stuff that I play. I like writing and playing the songs. If people think that I'm not going to fuck up, then they're wrong. And if they think this is like the last time I'm going to fuck up, they're wrong too. Because I'm young. I'm kinda stupid. I'm human.

A couple weeks ago I saw some flyers for a zombie pub crawl happening in my area, so I dug around and found the organizers and the event which is happening today (though it would've been SO. MUCH. BETTER. if they did it during Taste of Adams tomorrow):

The Zombie Pub Crawl is set for tonight starting at 7pm at the Triple Crown Pub. We will be going down Adams Ave visiting The Ould Sod, Lou's, Rosie Ogrady's, then down to Kadan & AC Lounge. We have arranged drink specials at most of the bars for those in the crawl. This is event is sponsored by SCR2P.COM. We are an online social calendar for people that like to meet new people and have a fun time.

You can meet the organizers at the event, just ask for Steven or Brent!

This event is free to attend and your encouraged to bring your friends. Arrive early at the Triple Crown for makeup from professional makeup artists.

I thought I was supposed to keep this like a secret until Monday, but since the Belly Up has let the cat out of the bag (and Seth posted on Last Blog On Earth), I'm so excited to share that Death Cab For Cutie is performing at Belly Up on July 3rd.

The show is a bit of a preview, as they're touring with The New Pornographers and Ra Ra Riot playing venues like The Hollywood Bowl and Red Rocks. The San Diego show will feature opener Matt Costa.

Needless to say, this is a very rare and special show. Tickets go on-sale on Monday at 10a.m.. To prevent scalpers, tickets will only be sold to people on the Belly Up's e-mail list (join here). There is a 2 ticket limit per person. Tickets are $30. Tickets will be will-call only and are non-transferable. Death Cab Fan Club members can buy via presale on Saturday.

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Just a reminder that Friday is the last day to buy presale tickets to N.E.R.D. at the Hard Rock Hotel, August 2. Click the flyer to go directly to ticketing.

Additionally, Friday is the last day to buy the super-low price tickets for the StayClassy.Org tailgate featuring Del Tha Funky Homosapian, Cage The Elephant, The Knee-Highs, and more. The tailgate party is happening on July 18 at Tailgate Park, adjacent Petco Park. For info and tickets, click here.

Last, Sunny Day Real Estate has reunited and while they're not playing in San Diego, they will be at the Music Box @ The Fonda on October 11. Presale tickets are available on Friday from 10am to 10pm. Click here for tickets and use presale code SUNNYDAY.

Just a reminder that Street Scene is coming back to the streets of downtown San Diego on August 28-29, 2009. There've been some additions (and the cancellation of MSTRKRFT since the original announcement), so here are the updates.

of Montreal, Delta Spirit, Busta Rhymes, Ted Leo & The Pharmacists, and Cage The Elephant were all added in the last two weeks. Also, if Street is correct and Grand Ole Party actually broke up (no confirmation from Kristin yet), then I suppose we can scratch them off the lineup.

As your diligent blogger, I've visited Pollstar, compared to Outside Lands, and checked the personal pages of many of the bands in order to break down much of the lineup. May not be 100% accurate, but here's the gist (alphabetically because I'm a spreadsheet geek):

There are a couple events that I included in this weekend's listings that deserve a little explanation; more than I usually give in a one line listing.

Friday night is the opening of Lucky D's in downtown. I know I'm not the biggest fan of downtown, but this bar seeks to lose the pretentiousness of most clubs and offer an environment that I'd call a down-to-earth with a rock n' roll edge. Mike D designed the drink list with his mad mixology skills and I got to sample some menu items and the chef is amazing with his Asian-influenced small bites. This will fit right in for fans of El Dorado and Voyeur.

On Saturday, you'll notice Jefferson Jay's 24 Hour Music event at Portugalia. Here are some snippets from the press release:

The show begins at 2AM on Saturday, June 27 and ends with a jam session at 2AM on Sunday morning, June 28. The event is FREE and an all ages event (with respect to curfew laws, I guess). Portugalia is located at 4839 Newport Ave. in Ocean Beach

Music will begin on Saturday at 2 a.m. (also known as Friday night) and play until 2 a.m. Sunday morning (a.k.a. Saturday night) during the 30th Annual OB Street Fair on June 28. Arrive early and stay late at Jefferson Jay's 24 Hours of Free Music.

The other event worth an explanation is Kerrie Caldwell's Voice Recital. You might know Kerrie from her motown cover band, The Heavy Love, that bring down the house everytime they play. Well, Kerrie's gonna bring down another kind of house this Sunday.

From Kerrie:

I will be singing an array of repertoire including German and French art songs & exciting and emotional opera arias (yes, emo is not a new thing). There will be printed lyrics and translations so you can follow along and know what the heck I'm singing about! I'm excited to see you there! Let me know if you have any questions :)

The FREE performance is on Sunday at 3 pm and will followed by a reception.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Last week, Street Scene added Delta Spirit and of Montreal to the 2009 lineup. This week, they're teasing via twitter (tweasing?) that 3 more will be announced. The first of those just spilled and it's Ted Leo & The Pharmacists.

Follow @Street_Scene on twitter for more announcements and the chance to win tickets throughout the summer.

What kind of daughter would I, Rosey, be, if I didn't pimp my mom, Rosie, and her family daycare? A fully licensed daycare out of their home in Chula Vista, and run by my mom for most of my life, my dad has been assisting in the children's care since his retirement about a decade ago. For anyone thinking Chula Vista is far, it takes less than 15 minutes from my place in Kensington, and that's in my hooptie.

They accept newborns all the way up to kindergarten, though there are also a couple lifers that my mom is still taking care of as they move through elementary school. If you or someone you know is in need of daycare, please feel free to contact me and I'll put you in touch with my mom. On occasion, they're also willing to take care of kids in the evening for parents catching a show at Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre as they live very nearby.

Someone recently mentioned that I hadn't been posting pics of Johanna of late, so here she is with her boyfriend/nemesis Jaxon.

I'm going to have very limited wi-fi over the next couple weeks as I'll be chasing tots around the daycare, but Jeff was kind enough to get this week's listings started. If there's anything we missed, leave a comment. The weekend listings will be up sometime before the weekend.

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Dinosaur Jr. are pretty nice dudes, and their tour manager is awesome (I love that he set up all the merch, by size and design, way before I got here). He let me snap a photo of the setlist before the show, too.

The band after sound check:

And here's just some random crowd photos:

I just wish I could see inside because Murph told me it was so hot it was gonna be hard to keep his clothes on...ooohlala.

Life is so funny, isn't it? Today I'm selling t-shirts for Dinosaur Jr., watching the daytime drinkers and smokers blinded by the sunlight, yet at this time tomorrow I'll be making lunch for daycare kids that I'll be watching for the next two weeks. Earthless is on stage right now, I think Dinosaur Jr wandered off to get coffee at Gelato Vero, and people are really excited for this show. Let this be how the week continues because last week (personally) sucked ass.

By the way, O was shooting photos throughout the entire soundcheck, so be sure to check out his blog What O Saw in the photo links in the sidebar later this week for more pics. As I'm working I probably won't be shooting anymore today.

Tonight I went to House of Blues to see Jones Street Station, Local Natives, and Ben Kweller. The show was supposed to be a mainstage show, however low ticket sales resulted in the show moving into the 5th Avenue Voodoo Stage. I have a lot to say about that and honestly I don't feel it reflects on the artists whatsoever, so I'll save it for another time.

I made it to the show early because I wanted to make sure to catch both opening bands. I think Local Natives were slated to play first, but since they're from LA and had tons of people out to see them, Jones Street Station started off the night. The band is made up of five guys who met in Brooklyn but who come from various locales (Minnesota, Jersey, Ohio, Missouri, Illinois) and it just reminds me how much I love boys from the Midwest. Their rootsy, Americana songwriting is addictive, and their harmonies are stellar. Throw in the various instruments (mandolin, stand up bass, keys, harmonica, accordion, tambourine) and I was sold upon first listen of their sophomore CD, In Verses.

For the rest of the recap, click 'keep on reading'.

Find more music like this on Jones Street StationI had a photo pass to the show but the lighting just doesn't work for my camera so here are just a couple shots. The rest, sadly, make the band appear like they're possessed. This is definitely a band I will be paying attention to in the future. There's not really a lead vocalist to the group... John belts it out and plays a mean harp, which he pulls out of a hunting belt; Danny's got more hushed vocals while strumming a guitar, banjo, or mandolin, which reminded me a bit of Ian Ball from Gomez. The rest of the guys sing, too, however the sound board they soundchecked with failed just before their set, so they had half the inputs they needed so we didn't quite get the full band harmonies.

Standout songs for me were "Evergreen" which definitely hit an emotional nerve for me and "Tall Buildings", which was the last song of their set. The entire band stood singing without mics while Danny played his acoustic guitar completely unplugged. Aside from the rude assholes that talked throughout the show, it was a pretty specatacular performance. I couldn't shoot video, but here's video of a similar performance in NY a few months back.

Between bands I was in a crowd of kids with their parents sharing that it was their first concert. An older lady got in a conversation with the people around me and she was in her early 80s, there to see her grandson in Local Natives. As the band was about to start, I maneuvered over for pictures only to then get screamed at from the sound guy. Even though I was where I was supposed to be. Dick. Anyway, after the first song he grabbed me and said I could shoot for the next two songs. Not that anything I attempted worked anyway...

I caught Local Natives when they played the loft a couple months ago and they're genuinely entertaining. I guess there's a vibe that some bands have...Local Natives, Port O Brien, Builders and Butchers, Blitzen Trapper and Dusty Rhodes all come to mind, where the band members are all clearly multi-talented, they play every show with the same heart, and they appear to be a happy family onstage, and there's really no way to fake that and it makes for really amazing live shows. These kids are good.

Jake had arrived by that point, so after a few photos I watched the set from the back of the crowd. Jake told some yuppies to shut up which made me laugh. Maybe people don't get out enough? I don't know. How someone can talk non stop for an band's entire set just floors me. And if you have so much to say, can't you just move it outside, or at least lean in to your friend's ear so you don't scream over a a band that is playing- That other people paid to see.

Anyway, I bought the band's EP since I didn't have cash last time around. After the set I introduced myself to 3/5 of Jones Street Station: JB, Danny, and Sam who couldn't have been nicer guys. We chatted a bit about the tour, about the "House of Rules", about the rest of the tour, and some random shit, like how JB wrote the bacon bacon beef jingle for Wendy's and when Sam came down with Poison Oak (he builds stuff, including hiking trails) he was in a clinic for treatment and the Wendy's ad came on. The way they spoke, riffing off each other, finishing sentences, I felt like we should all go sit around a campfire together. While we spoke, Ben Kweller walked up and they introduced me and then I let them be so they could talk about plans to join Ben onstage for his finale.

I also spoke briefly to Kelsey from Local Natives and (fingers crossed) might have them back in town soon, since they're based nearby. I'll let you know how that goes.

I went back into the venue to catch Ben Kweller and was happy to see that the crowd has swelled significantly. He started off the set with Gypsy Rose and naturally I love any song with my name in it. Kweller's songwriting and countrified music is mellow without being boring and he continued on playing a pretty lengthy set.

Again, after some pics, I hung with Jake along the side wall which is where we made our mistake of the evening and left. It isn't that we weren't enjoying the show, it was just that I had planned to catch Ghostbird at the Ruby Room. By the time we walked to his car, got caught up in gnarly post-Padres and regular Saturday night downtown traffic, we got to Hillcrest and searched aimlessly for parking for over half an hour. You can only cruise Essex so long before getting annoyed, both of us realizing we should've just stayed for the full set at House of Blues, especially since there was gonna be a big Ben Kweller/Jones Street Station/Local Natives finale that I'm sure was incredible. Can't win em all. With that, I turned in for the night, catching 120 Minutes on VH1 Classics and bid adieu to another Saturday night.

Honestly, it's not often that I'm excited about a show at the House of Blues, especially on a Saturday night, but it also isn't very often that I'm equally or more excited to see the openers than I am the actual headliner. Tonight is such a case when LA's The Local Natives and Brooklyn's Jones Street Station open for Ben Kweller.

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Perhaps you noticed that the U.S. Air Sex Championship is coming to the Casbah next week and thought, "What the hell is air sex?"

Well, it's pretty much exactly what it sounds like and YOU are the contestant. Get your costumes and lose your dignity and compete in the regional competition to represent in the national championship.

The show was initially inspired by Air Guitar competitions and has spread across the country and the world with a series of events in dozens of major cities and a World Finals event in Finland. In Air Guitar, of course, competitors pretend to play an instrument that isn't there. Air Sex is similar, except competitors get up on stage and pretend to make love with a partner who isn't there. In Austin last year, the competitions were dominated by the city's top comedians and improv performers.

I know the County Fair has only just begun, but racing season is just on the horizon and Del Mar Thoroughbred Club has announced this year's summer concert series. Gone are the days of 4 o'clock Fridays (now the first post is at 3) but the amazing music returns no matter what you call it. Also note, there are a couple weekend shows. More info here.

StayClassy.com, the guys behind the Elemental Experience (some day I will post the photos) and who also had a hugely successful tailgate last year are back again with a stellar lineup.

The Padres Tailgate will take place on July 18, 2009, with two stages.

Performers include Del Tha Funky Homosapien, Cage The Elephant, The Kneehighs, Vokab Kompany as well as a slew of DJs. Buy early and tickets are only $11, steadily increasing to $25 for day-of tickets.

Last week, I had the pleasure of taking another cruise around San Diego's big bay with one of my favorite performers. Believe me, after the disaster of a show earlier that week (with a band that shall not be mentioned but shares the name of a sour citrus candy), it was great seeing a musician that is happy and at least by all appearances, has his shit together. The boat was a bit chilly and windier than usual which is pretty evident in the videos, but I still think these are some reasonably decent recordings. Oh, and after the show I chatted with Rhett about NARM (the convention for record merchandisers where he played a showcase at On Broadway) and music and just about how awesome he is. A glance from those eyes could knock anyone out. *swoon* Huge thanks to KPRI and Hornblower for continuing to deliver amazing music to San Diego.

Monday, June 15, 2009

I haven't quite done a full post about my tour of Hard Rock Hotel last week and their intention to give San Diego another venue with which House of Blues will compete, but the first of their concerts was announced today. Stay tuned for more announcements coming soon. The bonus? Tickets will be sold via Frontgate (the same as the Casbah) so while you might pay a couple bucks for a service charge, you won't be paying the exorbitant fees that you would spend on Ticketmaster. Hells yes.

N*E*R*D* will perform in The Legends Ballroom on Sunday August 2nd

Details:Doors 8pmShow 9pm21+ show

Tickets go on sale for $40 via http://hardrockhotelsd.frontgatetickets.com/ starting at 10am on Saturday June 27th. A fanclub and Rock Royalty presale will begin this Saturday June 20th.

Ticket can only be purchased online. If tickets are still available on the day of the show, guests may buy them at the door.

This show will sell out in advance, all parties are highly encouraged to purchase these tickets as close to the on sale date as possible to avoid disappointment.

A couple weeks ago, I postedabout Silversun Pickups and their huge accomplishment in cracking the top 10 for Panic Switch, but I'm happy to say they went even further and have now hit #1. Click 'keep on reading' for the full announcement from Dangerbird Records. I cannot say enough how amazing they're going to be at Street Scene.

Silversun Pickups Hit #1 With Lead Single "Panic Switch"Monday June 15, 2009

It’s been 11 years since an independent artist ranked #1 on Billboard’s Hot Modern Rock Songs chart (Everlast’s “What It’s Like” hit #1 in December 1998) and today, Silversun Pickups are the proud title-holders. Lead single “Panic Switch,” from Swoon, has impressively jumped over tracks from Linkin Park and Green Day, which were also in the running. This is truly a triumphant day for Dangerbird and the band, as only three songs by artists on independently distributed labels have reached this position: The Offspring’s “Come Out And Play (Keep ‘Em Separated)” [#1, July 1994], the aforementioned Everlast, and now Silversun Pickups this week.

As co-founder of Dangerbird Records, Jeff Castelaz appreciates the significance of infiltrating a predominantly major label-ruled chart. “’Panic Switch’ hitting number one proves that the moving parts of the rock and roll experience are still in good working order: great band, great song, great listener response,” he says.

The quartet is currently making their way across Europe and will return in August for festival appearances, as well as a string of newly announced tour dates.

Sunday, June 14, 2009

Were you at the SD:Dialed In 2nd Anniversary show last November? If you were, you might recall catching Low Red Land, one of my favorite San Francisco bands. The boys will be back in town this coming week and I highly recommend checking them out.

Listen to them on MySpace and be at the show Friday night, when they join locals The Feelings Mutual, LA band The Fling, and Jalopy Gods.

Friday, June 12, 2009

I just wanted to share a letter I've just sent off to Esquire in response to their "America's Best Bars" article. Once again, San Diego has been dissed so I figured I'd share my thoughts with them. I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it! And if you're trying to wrap yer head around why I'm reading and writing to Esquire, well, let's just keep it moving folks, nothing here to see...

The full San Diego loving letter if you 'keep on reading'.Dearest Esquire,

I would like to thank you for once again perpetuating the undisputed truth that San Diego is a vapid cultural vacuum that has nothing to offer but Shamu and disappointing sports franchises. After reading your recent "Best Bars In America" article I checked the online database and sure enough there is only ONE San Diego bar mentioned. While the Red Fox Room is surely a fine place to down a few you definitely missed out on not mentioning that if you go to the Hotel Bar next door and order a drink you get to use their pool FOR FREE. Sun, pool, drinks; sure bet for some good times. As thanks for making sure we aren't inundated with pesky outsiders looking for "the San Diego Experience," I will not mention where to go for the best dirty Hendrick's martini that also happens to have great live music for free and inebriated elephants painted on the walls that'll tickle you "pink". I also won't tell you where to get one of the best burgers in town in a fantastic "waterfront" dive bar just a few blocks from the world famous Casbah. I certainly wouldn't want to tell you about one of San Diego's oldest neighborhood bars where you don't need an "alibi" to order one of their spicy Bloody Marys with pickled green beans! Yep, definitely no reason to visit the Capital of Small Breweries (believe it!) And just in case you were wondering, there is absolutely no Local Music Scene to speak of so please don't come here expecting to be entertained by anything resembling a vital community of bands. There are so many more I won't be telling you about (hey Beach Communities, you'll have to lobby yourselves for all the reasons no one should visit the half million or so dive bars in your neighborhoods!) 'cause really, LA and San Francisco are truly the only noteworthy cities in California and you really wouldn't want to bother yourself with us. We thank you and our hard working bartenders thank you! By the way, I believe there was a mistake in your listing for Tucson. The Buffet is the Scariest Bar in America. It's like walking into a David Lynch film without all of the Magical Wonder leaving only a sinister dread that something terribly terribly wrong is about to happen. At two in the afternoon.

I absolutely love Eulogies, their label Dangerbird, and their recent performance at Casbah with The Dears and Great Northern was great (not to mention they gave me their drink tickets before they left back to LA). This is "Bad Connection" off their most recent release Here Anonymous. The session was recorded in downtown Chicago at Shirk Music on May 13th.

I guess I never realized how much I vibe on percussion, but I've noticed lately that I'm really, really digging on the interesting drumming happening. Here are three videos that all just really work for me, and I hope you dig on them as well. Happy Friday!

By the way, Monahans "Dim The Aurora" is one of my favorite releases I've received this year. I highly recommend you check it out. Same is true for White Rabbits, but I'd say if you are on the fence, just go see them live at the Casbah next Wednesday, and when you're blown away, just pick up the album from the band.

Its scheduled release date is June 19th, but the fine folks over at www.nerve.com and Sony Pictures Classic have presented us with a advanced screening of the flick at the Hillcrest Cinemas (3965 5th Avenue) on Monday June 17th at 7PM. Check out the HD trailer for the movie here:

We’re sorry to say that we have to cancel the following shows in San Francisco, San Diego, and San Jose due to strict doctors orders. The cancellations are necessary and unavoidable. We apologize for the inconvenience to our fans as well as IAMX and Children Collide who we were to share the billing with. They are both amazing bands and we highly recommend you go check out their shows. We hope you understand and we promise to make up the dates as soon as possible.

My dear friend Marco Collins is busting his ass doing radio shows up in Seattle and LA (in the meantime, we all know he belongs to San Diego and dream of his return home). Anyway, I've had my hands on Jeremy Enigk's album OK Bear for about a month, but Marco is working with him and busting ass to spread the good word. And it is definitely good. Here's one video with a full orchestra. The rest if you 'keep on reading'. By the way, follow Marco on Twitter @notmarcocollins. Often hilarious, always informative.